Foot-arch supports



ru -M July 26, 1955 J. GUEST FOOT-ARCH SUPPORTS Filed Dec. 15, 1951INVEN 10 James Guest United States Patent FGQT-ARCH SUPPORTS JamesGuest, Bolton, England Application December 13, 1951, Serial No. 261,514

Claims priority, application Great Britain October 1, 1951 4 Claims.(Cl. 36-71) This invention relates to foot-arch supports, and is animprovement in or modification of that which forms the subject of myprior Patent No. 2,553,451.

In the specification of that patent I have disclosed a foot-arch supportfor application to a boot or shoe sole otherwise than at the inner sidethereof, and which comprises a rigid stiffener element adapted, when inuse, to extend forwardly from the heel at least to beneath the ball ofthe foot, that part of the support which lies beneath the transversearch of the foot during wear of the appliance having its undersideconvexly shaped so that the support acts as a lever of the first orderwith its fulcrum constituted by the convexity aforesaid or a coveringapplied to the latter.

The present invention is based upon an appreciation of the fact that theuse of longitudinal ribs makes possible an extremely light and strongconstruction of footarch support which will provide in use the samehighly advantageous levering action as do the supports described in myprior patent, whilst having no transverse rib as such.

According to this invention, a foot-arch support, designed to producethe levering action in use characteristic of the support disclosed in myprior patent aforesaid, is pressed from relatively thin sheet metal insuch a manner as to exhibit at its underside a plurality of laterallyspaced longitudinal ribs whose forward ends are rounded and disposed(when the appliance is in wear) beneath the transverse arch of the footto collectively provide a fulcrum for the levering actionabove-mentioned. The front is under the ball of the foot and is a leverarm on which the effort, or the wearers weight, is applied. That portionto the rear of the fulcrum is a lever carrying the load which is thebony structure of the foot. This structure constitutes a lever of thefirst class or order here the fulcrum is between the effort and theload.

Preferably the foot-arch support is permanently secured to the innersole of a boot or shoe, the outer sole of which covers at least thefront portion of the support and is deformed by the ribs thereon so asto act as a fulcrum in lieu of the latter.

in the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is an underside plan view of one form of the improved foot-archsupport intended for permanent incorporation in the sole of a boot orshoe.

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, and

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

In the construction illustrated, the stiffener element A of the improvedarch-support is pressed to the desired form from a suitably shaped blankof relatively thin sheet metal; for example, an aluminum alloy. Thethickness of sheet employed may be of the order of one'sixteenth of aninch.

The configuration of the stiffener element A in side elevation conformsto the curvature of a boot or shoe inner sole (indicated at B) from thebreast of the heel C at least to a position beneath the ball of the footwhen the boot or shoe is in use. Furthermore, the appliance 2,713,732Patented July 26, 1955 is pressed with a suitable transverse camber asclearly shown in Fig. 3.

It is proposed to produce such stiffener elements in a variety ofdifferent sizes or half-sizes corresponding to those normal in footwear.

As applied to a size 8 mans shoe, the stiffener element A may be some 5inches long, so that when its rear end is abutting the breast of theheel C, its front portion D will extend an inch or more forwardly of theaverage position of the wearers transverse arch.

The shank portion E of the stiffener element is formed, during thepressing operation, with a plurality of dependant ribs F of arcuatecross-section, which extend longitudinally of the appliance inside-by-side relation. Although shown as terminating about inch from therear edge of the stiffener element A, these ribs may be continued tosuch edgeif so desired, and in either case they are of such a length asto bring their rounded forward ends beneath the position of the wearerstransverse arch.

For convenience, there are three such ribs F, one arranged approximatelyon the longitudinal centre-line of the appliance, and the others inforwardly divergent relation thereto, the distance of each outer ribfrom the central rib being about /2 inch at the rear and 1 inch at itsforward end.

The height of each rib (measured from the undersurface of the stiffenerelement A) may be some A; inch at the front and may progressivelydiminish towards the rear of the appliance.

The shank portion E of the stiffener element is preferably formed at itsinner edge with an integral upwardly directed extension G which, whenthe appliance is fitted to a boot or shoe as hereinafter described,co-operates with the side of the upper to support the longitudinal archof the foot.

The improved appliance is intended for permanent incorporation in a bootor shoe, and for this purpose it may be initially located upon the innersole B by means of two rivets or screws H placed near opposite ends ofits longitudinal centre-line (i. e., adjacent the extremities of thecentral rib F).

As shown in Fig. l, the transverse dimensions of the stiffener element Aare such that its outer edge, and the forward portion of its inner edge,leave exposed a suflicient marginal width of the inner sole to permitsewingon of a full-length outer sole B in the normal manner. Where thelateral extension G of the appliance conceals the edge of the innersole, the corresponding portion of the outer sole B may be secured by arow of rivets or screws passing through holes I.

In the event of the tread portion of the outer throughsole becomingworn, such sole may be completely replaced in known manner, oralternatively the tread portion only may be cut away and replaced by ahalf-sole whose rear edge is cemented to the stiffener element and alsosecured thereto by further rivets.

When the appliance is being applied to used footwear, the outer sole iscompletely removed and the stiffener element secured to the inner sole Bby rivets or screws passing through holes H and I as aforesaid, afterwhich a halfsole is affixed, by sewing, cement, and rivets, the shankportion of the appliance being left exposed and preferably painted tomatch the footwear.

In such a case, the lateral extension G (suitably painted) will bewholly external to the boot or shoe, whereas when the appliance isincorporated in new footwear, it is preferred to conceal such extensionbetween the material of the upper and the lining therefor.

Whichever arrangement is employed, the front portion of the stiffenerelement is built into the thickness of the footwear sole, and the outerlayer B of the latter is de- 3 formed by the rounded front ends of theribs F, the height of which raises the toe end of the sole by acorresponding amount, in addition to the elevation imposed by its normalupsweep or cast.

In wear, the increased elevation of the front end of the sole isscarcely noticeable, and if desired the appearance of the footwear maybe improved by thickening the toe end of the sole to obviate anypronounced shoulder at the front of the stiffener element A.

In operation, the improved appliance maintains the shank portion of thesole rigid, the weight being taken upon the ridged area I of the outersole B covering the front ends of the ribs P, so that the metatarsalbones are not affected when the wearer is standing still.

During walking, however, the weight is transferred to the front portionD of the stiffener element A, which thereupon acts as a lever of thefirst order, having its fulcrum at the ridged sole area I. The foot isthus flexed in a normal manner and the upthrust of the shank portion Egently urges the bones of the foot towards their correct positions.

What I claim is:

1. A foot-arch support comprising a thin sheet of rigid material, thelength thereof being such that it extends from the breast of the heel tobeneath the ball of the foot of the wearer, said sheet being ofsubstantially uniform thickness throughout, a plurality of laterallyspaced longitudinal ribs at the underside of said sheet, said ribs beingspaced apart by substantially solid material, the front of said ribsterminating beneath the transverse arch of the wearer, the area at thefront end of said ribs constituting a fulcrum of a lever of the firstorder, that portion forwardly of said ribs extending forwardly of saidtransverse arch and the remainder adapted to pivot about said fulcrum.

2. A foot-arch support comprising a thin sheet of rigid material, thelength thereof being such that it extends from the breast of the heel tobeneath the ball of the foot of the wearer, said sheet being ofsubstantially uniform thickness throughout, a plurality of laterallyspaced longitudinal ribs at the underside of said sheet, said ribs beingspaced apart by substantially solid material, the front of said ribsterminating beneath the transverse arch of the wearer, the area at thefront end of said ribs constituting a fulcrum of a lever of the firstorder, the rear of said ribs terminating short of said breast, thatportion forwardly of said ribs extending forwardly of said transversearch and the remainder adapted to pivot about said fulcrum.

3. A foot-arch support comprising a thin sheet of rigid material, thelength thereof being such that it extends from the breast of the heel tobeneath the ball of the foot of the wearer, said sheet being ofsubstantially uniform thickness throughout, a plurality of laterallyspaced longitudinal ribs at the underside of said sheet, said ribs beingspaced apart by substantially solid material, the front of said ribsterminating beneath the transverse arch of the wearer, the area at thefront end of said ribs constituting a fulcrum of a lever of the firstorder, said ribs diverging from rear to front, that portion forwardly ofsaid ribs extending forwardly of said transverse arch and the re mainderadapted to pivot about said fulcrum.

4. A foot-arch supp'ort comprising a thin sheet of rigid material, thelength thereof being such that it extends from the breast of the heel tobeneath the ball of the foot of the wearer, said sheet being ofsubstantially uniform thickness throughout, a plurality of laterallyspaced longitudinal ribs at the underside of said sheet, said ribs beingspaced apart by substantially solid material, the front of said ribsterminating beneath the transverse arch of the wearer, the area at thefront end of said ribs constituting a fulcrum of a lever of the firstorder, that portion forwardly of said ribs extending forwardly of saidtransverse arch and the remainder adapted to pivot about said fulcrum,and an upward extension at the inner edge of the shank portion of saidsupport to support the longitudinal arch of the foot.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,215,090 Wood Feb. 6, 1917 1,301,579 Lewis Apr. 22, 1919 2,008,060Daniels July 16, 1935 2,129,424 Jay Sept. 6, 1938 2,464,023 Carson Mar.8, 1949 2,468,944 Pick et al. May 3, 1949 2,553,451 Guest May 15, 1951

